Bangladesh Freezes 14,000 More Gambling-Linked Accounts

Bangladesh has suspended more than 14,000 mobile financial service (MFS) accounts suspected of being used for illegal online gambling and digital money transfer activities.

According to local media reports, the Bangladesh Financial Intelligence Unit (BFIU) initiated the latest account freezes after receiving intelligence from another government agency.

A senior BFIU official confirmed to The Business Standard that organised criminal groups had been using mobile financial accounts to process transactions connected to online gambling and digital hundi operations.

The official also stated that authorities have already identified individuals believed to be involved in these criminal networks and have shared their details with law enforcement agencies for further action.

In addition to freezing the accounts, officials are working to prevent affected individuals from opening new mobile financial service accounts using the same identification documents.

Earlier this year, Finance Minister Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury announced that authorities had frozen 55,000 accounts associated with illegal gambling and digital hundi activities.

The latest enforcement action reflects Bangladesh’s continued efforts to disrupt not only illegal gambling operators but also the financial systems used to support unlawful gambling and money laundering activities.